Cleantech startups validate their technologies on land and water
Restor is an open-data, geospatial platform that offers nature stewards access to the latest ecological science for impact storytelling. With over 220,000 sites, Restor is the largest network of community-led restoration and conservation efforts across the globe. Through Restor, governments, companies, impact funders and financial institutions can connect and contribute to the regenerative use of the land we all depend on.
The government of Guatemala has partnered with Restor to scale up nature monitoring and meet 2030 goals. A key part of this collaboration is the use of dedicated Target Tracking dashboards, developed with the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organisation (UN FAO), to track and report on the contributions of Non-State Actors, including Indigenous Peoples and Local Communities. By integrating national restoration records and field data into Restor, Guatemala will enhance technical planning, align with its National Forest Landscape Restoration Strategy, and support reporting to global frameworks like the Global Biodiversity Framework and the delivery of the outcomes of the Global Stocktake of the Paris Agreement under the UN Climate Change Convention.
The tracking features with Restor’s technology will enable greater transparency and accuracy, and access to critical data on carbon, biodiversity, water, and land-use change. The first phase will monitor 83,000 sites covering 520,000 hectares (almost twice the size of Luxembourg) – directly benefiting over 285,000 people. The goal is to double that impact by 2030 and unlock $500 million to support local communities over the next five years.
Neustark launches first project in France
Neustark, a European pioneer in the storage of CO 2 in mineral materials, has entered a strategic partnership with the Lingenheld Group, a major player in public works and professions related to the circular economy, for the commissioning of the first French CO 2 storage site in clinker from the incineration of non-hazardous waste.
Located along Hitzthal road in Oberschaeffolsheim (low Rhine), this facility will be operational during the year 2026. It will store up to 1 200 tonnes of CO 2 per year, thanks to a biogenic CO 2 supply initially from the ABH capture site located only 30 km from the storage site. The neustark process installed at the Lingenheld recycling site will process 84 000 tonnes of clinker per year, which will then be upgraded in road technology and platforms. This project marks a first in France: CO 2 had never been stored sustainably in clinker, these solid residues from household waste incineration (MIOM). The startup has already captured and stored CO2 in 38 facilities in operation across Europe (France, Germany, Switzerland, Liechtenstein, Italy, Austria and Great Britain) The captured CO 2 is permanently stored in recycled clinker aggregates, which prevents it from returning to the atmosphere. This sustainable storage generates negative emissions by actively removing carbon from the atmospheric cycle.
Fly-box launches pilot project in Geneva
Fly-Box is dedicated to revolutionizing freight transportation by decongesting ports and cities and decarbonizing traffic using innovative flying platforms for container transit. Their technology features 20-meter-long “Fly-Box” platforms capable of carrying standard 40-foot shipping containers with payloads up to 30 tons, cruising at 25 knots with a take-off speed of 12 knots. These platforms are designed for the “last leg” of container transport—moving cargo between major and secondary ports—while avoiding traditional diesel truck usage. Fly-Box platforms will operate as a kind of ‘sea train,’ with one piloted unit leading the others autonomously tethered.
The company’s latest proof of concept, the Fly-Box Compact—an 8-meter, battery-powered version for smaller payloads—has been launched on Lake Geneva and is undergoing sea trials as part of a broader plan to decarbonize short-haul urban deliveries and support the transition to greener logistics in maritime and urban environments.
Historic moment for Synhelion’s solar gasoline
At Synhelion, their vision to transform light into fuel came to life. Early this month, the company fueled a car with solar gasoline for the first time ever. The 1985 Audi Sport quattro became the first vehicle in history to run on solar gasoline produced at Synhelion’s industrial-scale plant DAWN in Jülich, Germany. The car’s historic drive marks the debut of solar gasoline as a viable, drop-in fuel for existing internal combustion engines. No modifications were made to the Audi’s original 306 hp engine, demonstrating the compatibility of Synhelion’s renewable synthetic fuel with today’s vehicles and infrastructure. Synhelion’s proprietary technology uses solar heat to drive a thermochemical process that converts a biogenic carbon source and water into synthetic drop-in fuels, namely sustainable aviation fuel (SAF), gasoline, and diesel. These fuels are nearly CO₂-neutral, emitting only as much CO₂ during use as was used in their production.
(RAN)